And it’s a flying start to this pivotal Hawks’ offseason

Agreed, wanted lawson to fall for us. thought it was a sure thing once philly took their PG of the future with MINN already having took not one but TWO PG’s in the first 6! picks but alas the NBA..Hope Teague continues his scoring dominance, we need to take as much pressure off of Joe and this draft pick with the addition of Crawford will have us averaging AT LEAST 4-5pt’s more per game, as long as Horford and Smith continue to dominate on the defensive end 50 wins doesn’t seem that far-fetched as all..huh..are we really talking about the HAWKS?! great time to be a fan of this up and coming franchise

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It won’t matter until we get a super star and guys like JJ and JS are gone. That’s the real issue! They’ve gotta go!

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Watch them let Solo go and grab Siler during free agency…I think that was the big gamble they were making not drafting big at all…Picking Teague almost screams “Keeping Bibby” to me, Crawford already makes up for the losing him since he can pick up when either Mike or Joe aren’t performing up to snuff. I look forward to seeing who we retain and who we pick up, and with the weird reserve back-court free agents available (Drew Gooden, Jason Collins, Anderson Varejao), we could make some big steals…let’s just see if the Spirit Group allow these reasonable actions to continue…

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Mr. Bradley, go get some sleep… Lot’s of questions for Sund regarding the direction from here… And eat something!!!

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Well, Rick Sund has made us all think. “Let’s go Hawks”. I’m curious about what comes next. The Hawks still have rights to Josh Childress and David Andersen (a big man playing in Europe). If Josh returns, we add another long lengthy defender with good energy. Looking at servicable undrafted big men…was Alade Aminu that bad? Here is a 6′10″ local guy that I think is athletic enough to play center and run with the team the Hawks are putting together. Sign Marvin, we keep forgetting, he’s just 23 years old. As the team has improved, so has his game.

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I wish I knew more aboutthis game so I could sound like I knew something, but after watching on TV I hope the hawks keep Flip

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Mark, if Marvin is the top priority, what makes you think we would only tender him and let him walk a year later? Wouldn’t it make more sense to sign him long term? In this economy we stand to get a decent bargain on him. I imagine we can sign him for less years (say four) and a lot less money than Josh while offering him an opt out clasue after the second or third year. Wouldn’t that be the more logical move? The guy is only 23!

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I also believe that Marvin should be signed to a new contract. The Hawks are thin at 3 and MW seems to be finally coming around.

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At least they didn’t draft a 6′7″ wingman because he was the “best available athlete”!

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at first, i was excidted about the crawford pickup. check this out though, if the hawks lose bibby and have crawford tutor teague, how are the hawks BETTER ? in other words, bibby could score, the hawks problem is their half court offense, or lack thereof. woodson for whatever reason, cannot or will not develop a halfcourt post game for smith or horford. are the hawks just spinning their wheels by replacing one perimeter point guard with another because of woodson’s style of play in the halfcourt game?

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Since we still didn’t acquire an athletic big man, “Yawn…”

We still have a big hole in the middle.

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Mark – here’s “the catch” on Crawford. He has a reputation as a “me-first” guy, plays zero defense, and his offensive numbers have been inflated by being either the ONLY talented guy on a team (i.e. Chicago a few years back) or playing on the most up-tempo offense in the NBA (Golden State). Oh, and also the fact that we gave up on Acie Law.

Which leads me to my next point – what would lead us to think that Jeff Teague will see the light of day? Past performance is the best indicator of the future, and Mike Woodson has already buried one 1st round pick PG on the bench in Acie Law, giving up on him in 2 years. And he was a lottery pick!! So what makes us think Woodson knows what the heck to do with Teague? Woodson does not “coach” this team. We win games on our athleticism alone. No one has improved substantially under Woodson. Horford was this good coming out of college. JJ was this good when he got here. Marvin has not turned out to be half the player anyone thought he’d be, and Josh Smith should be playing in the stratosphere with all of that athletic ability – instead, he’s a 2nd/3rd-tier NBA player.

So please, Mark, tell me why I should believe that Jeff Teague will do ANYTHING?

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MARK BRADLEY,

what is the deal with Cenkyl? are the hawks ever goin’ to bring him over?

i still think that we are in a 4 way tie with the 4th seed: hawks, miami, chicago, philly. we have done absolutely nothin’ to compete with the big 3- clev, orlando, boston

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Like Neil, I was crushed when Lawson got picked by Minnesota one spot ahead of the Hawks. Lawson would have been perfect for this up-tempo, transition team. Not sure about Teague, but “explosive first step” seems to be the consistent review of his game. The trade of Vince Carter to the Magic means that Hedo Turkoglu is NOT going to re-sign with the Magic (not enough cash for Orlando). Rick Sund needs to let Bibby and Marvin go and use the $10-15M that those two would have required to sign Hedo. A starting lineup of Crawford/Teague, Joe, Hedo, Josh and Al will be good for 3rd place in the East (ahead of aging Boston). Hedo, Hedo, Hedo.

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Wonderful blog, Mr. Bradley! Keep up the Hawks blogs! Us dedicated fans REALLY appreciate it…and you know what you’re talking about! (for the most part–haha!)

I love the decision to get Teague. Hopefully Sund can resign Bibby as well as Zaza and give the QO to Marvin. Sign another veteran big, and boom! Contender!

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mountain_jim im having the same problems with the Shultz blog’s

although yesterday when i got home from work where i have Mozilla Firefox i was able to view it. but IE at work is not getting it done.

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One thing is for sure with the selection of Teague and that is he will continue to be “lightly coached”. And as far as being in “capable hands” I assume you mean Sund?

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we have not done anything to close the gap between clev, orlando, or boston.

and we have done nothin’ to seperate ourselves from miami, chicago, philly, or indy. indy is goin’ to be hella betta this yr

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HEDO FAN,

Picking up Turkoglu would have been a good idea in S&T or free agency, but with Crawford on board it would be overkill to pursue a third offensive wing player. Especially since Marvin averaged the same amount of points in the Regular Season for a fraction of the cost.

Hedo, JJ and Crawford is a dream lineup on NBA Live. But on the court they would be abused defensively and have trouble sharing the ball.

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sorry, mark.

the point that i was tryin’ to make was that with doc rivers bein’ a point, he knew what rondo was goin’ thru and how much leeway to give him. with woody never playin’ point, he did not know how much leeway to give.

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Thanks for the update Mark. It will be interesting to see how the FA season unfolds for the Hawks and what the organization may have in store.

At a minumum, it seems like they’ve given themselves some options and flexibility, which is a lot better than where they stood heading into last July.

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Mike Woodson doesn’t have a problem playing young players. He has a problem playing young guards, but watching the highlights of Teague he could serve as a more athletic Mike Bibby.

Mark,
Your disdain for Marvin is unbelievable. I think Marvin is just as important as Al Horford and Josh Smith. If we can keep these three young guys on long deals then we would have a ridiculous nucleus of young talent. And we could swap and switch and draft to fill the other positions. And is Jeff Teague pans out then it would be a four team nucleus. Now that is staple that can keep your team in the playoffs for a very long time.

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Might Crawford and JJ combine at SG and SF the way Sprewell and A. Houston once did for the Knicks? A thunder and lightning combo who, with Smoove, are unstoppable in transition.

We move Marvin to the bench and have a pretty potent 2nd unit with Teague, Marvin, Mo and Zaza.

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WPinAZ – Your PG argument doesn’t work. Salim and Acie are not point guards. They are little 2 guards. Huge difference.

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So far so good for this offseason, but let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. Remember, Cavs just got Shaq and Orlando just got Carter which I think makes both teams that much better. Also, let’s not forget that the Hawks will have am much harder schedule next season as well.

I’m not concerned about the Hawks winning 50 games. I want to see the Hawks advance further in the playoffs. I know the more games you win the better position you are in the playoffs but I bet the Cavs would have traded a few of their regular season wins for a few more playoff wins??

We need Bibby and or Murray for sure. Too much to ask of a 19th selected rookie to run an offense and Crawford is not a pure point guard. We also need help up front. Horford can’t do it alone! I would like to see maybe a trade of Williams for some inside help if we can get equal value? Williams has in my opinion a huge upside. He really played well last year so giving up his stats would difficult to overcome. Overall, the Hawks are improved and that’s a reflection on the GM. Nice Job!

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Mark – in a blog discussion you said that Law didn’t have a chance to do well under Woodson (or something similar). What’s going to keep the same thing from happening with Teague? Do you think Teague has a chance to be better than Acie?

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Jeff Teague will be a complete bust. He lacks the ball handling skills and an understanding of the fundamentals to be effective in the NBA. All in all, looks like another whiff for the Hawks in the draft.

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Sorry for the noob question, but what determines if a player is a restricted or unrestricted free agent?

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Has Woody made any promises towards giving Teague minutes?

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Bradley you have drunk the kool-aid and obviously are convinced that the Hawks don’t need a more sizable center.

I hope I’m wrong but Al Horford cannot match up with any of the centers for the top eight NBA playoff teams—and never will unless we become a run and gun team which still won’t suffice as you have to have a half-court game in the playoffs. I love Al but he cannot go toe-to-toe with the elite teams and their centers: LA-Bynum, Denver-Nene, Spurs-Duncan/Bonner, Orlando-Howard, Cavs-Shaq & Ilgauskas and Boston-Perkins or even with the playoff teams and their centers: Mavs-Dampier (with BJ Mullens as his successor in training), Rockets-Yao, New Orleans-Tyson Chandler, and 76ers-Dalembert with the exception of the Miami Heat-Magloire/O’Neal (which isn’t saying much and only further serves to illustrate my point—we won’t breakthrough without a center who can D-up versus the big burly guys (Perkins, Shaq/Ilgauskas) and prevent teams from driving down the lane at will (like D-Wade did and LeBron) or be a consistent scoring threat versus the other guys making them work on both ends of the floor (Howard, Bynum).

Mullens may not have been the answer but we need more than Al and ZaZa. I say trade Marvin and get Tyson Chandler. Have you any thoughts, Bradley?

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Granted Mike Bibby and Flip should’ve been ahead of him on the depth chart. But, there’s no way he should’ve been behind Tyronn Lue and Anthony Johnson before the Bibby trade.

Did anyone see when they flashed the graphic with his 3.5 assists that led the team? I literally laughed at that. My laughter turned to madness when I looked up his other stats and saw 3.4 turnovers. We may as well let Josh Smith play point forward.

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Mark, Is the plan for Gladyr to be on the Hawks roster next season, or will he be in Europe for a few more years, any idea?

As much as I like Mike Bibby as a scoring threat, he really isn’t much more of a point guard than Crawford is. I remember last year seeing Flip or Joe taking the ball up the court more often than Bibby it seemed. At this point I don’t see a burning desire to keep either of them given we have added a scoring combo guard. I will say I think Flip Murray was the MVP of the Hawks last season an have much love for the guy. I’d like to see us find one more quality bench shooter and lock up ZaZa and Marvin. Unfortunately, there’s not much we can do to catch the Cavs or Magic this season.

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shockingly agree w/ you on most things mark, but not on Al/Josh vs Chandler/Al.
Living down here in NOLA and watching the Hornets on cable some, when Tyson is right, he is what I think the hawks REALLY need as far as D and rebounding. We don’t need bigtime scoring on the post (Al, praying Josh will do that). We need what a Verajo, Chandler would bring.

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If we trade Marvin who is going to guard the teams best perimeter players?
Mo Evans can’t.
Joe Johnson can, but he is only getting older and caring the scoring burden and the defense burden burns him out by mid season.
We said Jamal Crawford can’t play defense not that he has every played for a defensive minded coach.
Josh Smith can’t play defense on perimeter players and why should he have to he is a power forward.
Jeff Teague is to small.

So in a conference with Lebron James, Paul Pierce, Andre Iguadalo, Danny Granger,
And with a division of Dwayne Wade, and gasp the hawks killer vince carter who do we get to guard those guys?

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Mark, what was your thought of what Kahn did for the Timberwolves? very odd taking two point guards at #6 & #7 and the GM says his intent is on keeping both. From reports, Rubio is very unhappy with Minnesota right now – if he walks and stays in Spain then Kahn/Minnesota look like idiots…..

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There’s no way we can let Bibby walk after drafting a 6′1″ shooting guard.

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What’s the difference between Amare and Josh?

Sounder offensive game and a little girth. I think I would keep Josh at this point if that trade presented itself.

However if the clippers said Josh Smith for Chris Kaman and one/some first round picks I might have to say yes. might. If i was keeping Woodson.

If woodson is gone then I probably don’t trade Josh.

“Joe Johnson can.”- realsquawk 11:14 a.m.

Mark,
what’s going on with the Timberwolves. Flynn and Rubio?

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Volman,

I am pretty sure Mark was occupied during those games. It wasn’t the playoffs, it wasn’t Lebron, Kobe, Wade, or Howard so why should he care.

Can the magic still sign Hedo?

Nelson, Carter, Hedo Lewis, Dwight? Peitrus now that is line up.

Speaking of line up

Teague/Bibby, Joe, Marvin, Josh, Al? Crawford, Mo, Josh, Zaza. With enough defense and running you could see them in the finals.

Right by the way Everyone is saying bye Bibby, but i think it might be bye flip. I think.

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Bravedawg – Who has said Crawford was a me-first player ? certainly not his coaches or teammates.Hes always been considered one of the best lockeroom guys and one of the most coachable players ? The beef with the Warriors was not about his attitude or play it was about Nelson feeling Crawford and Ellis playing the same position and there not being enough minutes to go around .

Do you believe Kevin Durants numbers are inflated by being the only option on a horrible team ? I hate to break it to you you dont get to average 20 points in the nba unless you can play . There is no type of number inflater that gets you 20 and 5 for a season on a bad team simply because when teams lock onto you defensively you are either sink or swim quite fast.

He didnt average those numbers on chicago but on the knicks who didnt play uptempo in 20007-08 now that was a team in disarray because of Marbury and Isiah thomas . But here is the real catch Crawford averaged 20 and 5 on that knicks team but the very next season under a very good coach in Mike D’antoni he was averaging nearly the same thing but with better shooting percentages . That tells me that in a stable enviornment Crawford can be a real asset and his numbers are not as hollow as they may look.

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Since I have been one of Mr. Sund worst critics, I most say I am pleased with his performance (so far) and will give am a one-thumb up at this point. It’s ironic; it was on a previous Mark Blog that I recommended pursuing Crawford when he was stuck in Nellie’s dog house. It was beyond my wildest dreams that Sund was able to acquire a prolific scorer for so little. The Teague pick was nice and as expected. The one-thumb up is to suggest that Sund’s work is far from over. I will caution Sund to pay attention to Defense. As much as I like Crawford and what he brings to the Hawks, we are very weak on the defense side of the ball. As it was also last year, Marvin William is the wild-card of this team. He brings balance to our tweener frontline with his rebounding ability and his style of play is a nice compliment to our mix of players. We don’t need all scorers; somebody has to do the dirty work like a junk-yard dog. Marvin can bring such intangibles not to mention his 3-pt threat. We have fallen in love with Chill, because he also brought complimentary intangibles that the Hawks needed. We all know that offense sells tickets but defense (and rebounding) wins games. Yes we celebrate the addition of Crawford and Teague, but we don’t want to be the team that scores 150 points and lose by 19. This suggests that we cannot just stack the team with ball hogging offense minded players. WE MUST HAVE A BALANCE TO WIN!! It has been mentioned that we should pursue Hedo. I disagree. Yes he brings mismatches and offense but he plays no defense; Orlando loss the series because of defense not offense, plain and simple. If we had a lineup of Bibby, Hedo Crawford, Josh and Al, it would be a recipe for disaster on the defense side of the ball. In a nutshell, WE MUST THINK OF TEAM CHEMISTRY WHEN WE START ADDING PLAYERS. Mr. Sund, you will earn my other thumb-up if you get this done.

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MB. Good read but let’s be real here. We have another year with Woody and that stinks. Let’s hope he does not damage the confidence of another good player like Teague.

We need to sign and trade Marvin, sign Flip and ZP and let Bibby go. Go after Gortat or some big man to help in the paint. It is obvious that Woody can not develop young players. He is sad.

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Realsquawk, do I see you on the Hawksquawk site? I think I remember seeing you from there. I rarely post on there, but I’m a regular on there reading posts. I’m “Volman” on there.

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The Truth: Hedo is not a bad defender (see swat of Kobe in finals) and his offense/size/versatility far outweigh whatever perceived defensive weakness there may be. Josh, Al and Joe can defend … what we need most is someone to take the heat off Joe on the offensive side of the ball, so we don’t stand around watching Joe try to go 1-on-1 with 8 seconds left on the shot clock. With Hedo, Jamal and Joe, we’ve got 3 great shooters (just like Orlando had in the playoffs) and that will force Josh to go to the post where he belongs. With Joe and Al on the blocks and 3 shooters, we can play with anyone.

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Zaza is a beast on the glass and must be resigned. We already have a hole in the paint with him on the team, so you can only image how things would be without him. If we were competing for the high jump competition, I would be opposed to trading J.Smith, but we’re not, so if we could get a solid big man for him, we should. His heart and low Basketball IQ is a dangerous combination. I can’t count how many times he’s turned the ball over bringing the ball up the court where he has two guards alongside him with open arms. Not mention the long ball airballs, and the fact that he doesn’t play hard and is easily shaken on the court off of one or two misses. The reason why Horford is so good is because he knows what he can and can’t do and he has a high Basketball IQ. Those are the type of players I would like to see this franchise built around. Marvin has developed more than anyone on the team in spite of the comparisons to CP3 and Deron, and he just added a deadly 3 to his game so I think it’s a priority to resign him. I would like to see Flip resigned, but I don’t mind if Bibby goes. They both have no conscience which is great, but if Bibby wants what I expect him to want, he’s not worth the money. Do you know what the status of JChills is? Bringing him back would be a huge step in the right direction with a more scrappy, hustling, defensive minded team, because that’s what this team lacks. Crawford was a huge pick up and as much as I’m upset to see Law go, we came out on top in that trade, and I’m glad they were able to dump an overpaid, injury-prone Claxton. And as for my comments about Smith, I like the guy and he has a ton of potential which only adds to his trade value. But he’s also overpaid, and I don’t believe he will live up to his potential, which is why I woudn’t mind letting him go. Plus, I always found it odd that he is one of the few players who doesn’t get along with Woody, and since Woody’s record as head coach has improved, I don’t think Woody is going anywhere. It would also clear up some cap space to make an attempt to resign JJ next year. I still believe this team should be built around him, as he is our best all around player. What is the likeliness of a sign and trade with Mike Bibby? Would anyone be interested, and would his value be high enough to get a solid big man?

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Hedo Fan
I see where you are coming from about Hedo. I will tone down my criticism of Hedo somewhat because I do also like his offense game. But it is clear to me that Orlando loss the series because of defense not offense. Yes Hedo made a nice defense play against Kobe but he had numerous defense lapses at critical times that negated his fine offense performance. My bone I am picking is more about our team chemistry then Hedo offense game. Somebody has to do the intangible things more than AL. Josh is proving not to be interested in rebounding but scoring and occasional blocking shots. Al can’t carry the rebounding load by himself. I just think from a chemistry prospective, Marvin is a better fit. No disrespect to Hedo.

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Volman,

I won’t lie. I registered for the site and have probably been on there once or twice, but I have found it to be really confusing to use at times so I don’t really go there often.

Joe Johnson, Mike Bibby, Flip Murray, Jamal Crawford, Jeff Teague, Josh Childress
Marvin Williams, Mo Evans
Al Horford, Josh Smith Zaza Pachulia, David Anderson

that right there ladies and gentleman is a championship contending team and a 12 man rotation where everyone deserves at least ten minutes.

That roster is financially impossible, but not really if the pockets of our owners were really really deep it would be possible, but financially irresponsible.

that list is organized in player positions Guard, forwards, and big forward/centers. The guards can’t be forwards and such.

Organize as you like it, but I believe those are the most feasible players for pick up. We have relationships or rights with all of those players.

Unlike in the past we have a playoff team which means we could attract more free agents than usual.

all this is all so random.

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RealSquawk,

Bradley always seems to pay attention to the Hawks on draft nights, at the beginning of the season, and during the playoffs. My problem – and please, Bradley, correct me if I’m wrong – is that he doesn’t seem to pay much attention to them during the 82 games that comprise the regular season. It’s tough to take a guy’s impression of Marvin Williams seriously when he only watched him during the playoffs, when he was playing through two injuries. It also makes it tough to take his impression of Josh vs. Joe seriously for the same reason.

So Mark, if you’ll admit that you’re basing your impressions of the Hawks almost entirely on the playoffs – when Marvin, Joe, and Al were all playing through injuries – then I’ll shut up about this. But don’t talk like you watched the Hawks all year if you haven’t. It’s insulting to those of us who spend significant amounts of money to watch every game we can.

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It’s easy to say that Marvin is just a guy, but you need someone of that size to defend the LeBrons, Pierces, Turkoglus at the SF. Until you come up with someone else to do it, you need Marvin. The bonus is that he scores enough that those guys cannot rest all the time on defense.

Show me the just a guy to replace him for less and I’ll back off.

Chills was too sleight to defend the more physical guys. Mo and Mario are too short to do it on a regular basis. If Josh does it, then you need someone that can guard a PF in spurts or you play him at the SF full time and you need a Eurocenter with a jump shot to help with the perimeter offense.

I think too many folks are stuck on that #2 pick thing. Last I recall, players get selected in the draft, they don’t do the choosing.

BWAF

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Co-sign MannyT.

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RIP Michael Jackson!
Gone to soon……
Now the Hawks they did exactly what they had to do.
No need to get mad at them this time. They also picked up a true scorer in Crawford and God knows we needed help when JJ got triple teamed. Sund get’s the benefit of the doubt from me and so far the dude ain’t made no big mistakes.
Go Hawks!!!

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J. Chill:

“This did not help (our) team at all … the moment you play and you have found a rhythm, you cannot stop because (of violence) in the stands,” said Childress. “The violence we saw today, will make me think real hard over my future in Europe.”

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Jarvis,
we are on the same page as far as that goes.
he rescinded that comment or said the opposite a couple of days later though, but I think that might have been just to protect his stock when returning to the NBA.

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I think the Hawks will have a better team than the Magic next year.Primarily because Hedo is gone and Carter is in.Hedo was the pulse of that team he makes everything go.Carter is a ball hog.I hope Hawks go out and sign Hedo and let Marvin go if possible.HAWKS are WINNING THE DIVISION

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We could of gotten him for 3 yrs 10 mill if we didn’t get crawford

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One comment about Flip; Some on these blogs have suggested that since we have Crawford, we don’t need Flip. I disagree. Flip is a game changer and that is rare in the NBA. How many times have Flip come into a game and lifted the confidence of the team to victory? The suggestion the Flip is a ball-hog is unfair. Flip is a vet and has a high IQ for the game. Flip goes off offensively based on the lineup and timing. He gets a green light from Woody to do so. When JJ and Flip are both in the lineup; Flip plays an entirely different game. He can be a playmaker as well (although he does need to work on that part of his game more). If Flip can play with JJ, then Flip can also play with Crawford since JJ and Crawford have a similar ISO game. From an offensive prospective, can you imagine the scoring threat of having JJ, Crawford and Flip on the floor at the same time? You pick your poison. I’m sorry but Flip is a keeper. As a UFA, I know Flip wants to get paid and that is expected, but Flip also knows that his situation with the Hawks is unique. Very few NBA teams will allow him to play at his style and he knows it.

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I disagree with you about Maynord Bradley. Teague is a much more explosive gaurd that can shoot it and penetrate the lane. His vision may not be as good as Maynords, who in my opinon is much closer to Acie Law than Teague. But really, we said that we need someone to take some pressure off of JJ. And who knows, if this kid as good with the ball in his hand as advertised, then that should (along witht the addition of Crawford) take some of the scoring pressure off of JJ’s shoulders..

Honestly, I’m a bit happy that Lawson didn’t fall to us, because we need a PG that’s capable of playing within the halfcourt. Lawson is great and would’ve really complemented a team that loves to run, but that’s not something that TEAGUE is not capable of doing. He may not be as quick as Lawson getting from one end of the court to the other, but he loves to push it – so I’m assuming we’ll still be seeing those rim-rackers from Smoove and company. Personally, I see Lawson as being like a PG that also came out of UNC a few years back – RAYMOND FELTON. They both possess amazing speed and love to push. But, I see Teague a better option than Lawson in the halfcourt – where the Hawks struggled mightily this past season.

Now it all depends on whether Woody can actually handle the task of GROOMING A YOUNGSTER. We got some vets around the kid to make it a bit easier for him. I honestly think you throw him in there immediately. Look at guys like Mario Chalmers in Miami, who started the point for Miami this past season as a rookie. He got his share of action this past season on a much less talented team. I think Teague has the talent around him to assert himself pretty well into the offense.

One more note, IF WOODY SHOWS ANY SIGN OF SCREWING THIS PICK UP BY NOT GIVING HIM THE P.T. OR COACHING HIM UP – FIRE HIM. POINT BLANK.

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Jamal Crawford is pumped to come to ATL. Funny to think of someone going to the hawks to try and make their first career playoff appearance.

http://nba.fanhouse.com/2009/06/26/jamal-crawford-excited-about-atlanta/

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I love it Manny, but are you saying the Hawks need somebody to run around and worry about defense so people like Joe can put all of their focus on scoring? Hopefully having someone like Crawford (and maybe Teague to an extent if he can shine this first year) will let Joe be able to do some other things than chuck up a lot of shots, do the Iso-Joe, and play 40+ minutes every night.

Boy that would be nice.

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Amen, Wabe. (I ALWAYS think about D-Wade when I see your name—AHH!!! haha)

Anyway, I think Crawford is a great ADDITION to the bench. This bench needs ADDITIONS, not replacements. Sure it is great to add Crawford, but it would be even better to get Zaza back and either Flip or Bibby. Crawford, like he said, could be a “missing piece” to this team’s woes in the playoffs. I honestly think he could. He’s not the difference in this team winning championships or not, but he brings a lot of fire power.

Come on BASG, bring back the “core” of this team, and keep up with your “additions” (like Crawford). Make sure Crawford isn’t a replacement…

Just an addition.

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Ahh..”of”, not “who”…Sorry!

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Bibby won’t be back..

Marvin > Bibby.

Plus, the kind of money Bibby’s trying to pull would literally diminish the Hawks chances of landing some key FA’s because the lack of cap space. They should be actively pursuing some BIGS and need the money to do that. And I kinda agree with someone who posted a comment about Bibby being on the market for a long-term deal. I think his mentality at this point would be to get a long term deal because this may be his last chance to get one.

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Volman,

Don’t be a hater…Dickau had a song

http://impersonator.com/Dan.mp3

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THE HAWKS ARE AT A POINT THAT TEAMS LIKE ORLANDO AND HOUSTON WERE AT A COUPLE YEARS BACK. THE TEAM AS THEY HAD IT WAS NOT CAPABLE OF DOING ANY BETTER THAN THEY DID LAST SEASON !WITHOUT! ADDING SOME DEPTH. THEY’VE BUILT A SOLID CORE – NOW IT’S TIME TO LOOK FOR GUYS WHO CAN COME OFF BENCH AND COMPLEMENT WHAT THEY’VE BUILT. BIBBY WAS NOT A PART OF THIS CORE – HE WAS A STOP-GAP MEASURE AT THE POINT! YOU DONT GET RID OF GUYS LIKE MARVIN – WHO I KNOW HASN’T LIVED UP TO THE HYPE – BUT IS A CORE PEICE ON THE TEAM TO RESIGN PLAYERS LIKE BIBBY!

LOOK AT WHERE THOSE TEAMS ARE NOW – THEY’RE DEEP AND ARE LEGITIMATE CONTENDERS – NOT PRETENDERS AS THE HAWKS WERE THIS PAST SEASON.

ADD DEPTH! GET SOME BIGS VIA FA! MAYBE MAKE A DEAL FOR A BIG/BACKUP PG IF YOU HAVE TO!

HINRICH AND MILLER? I’M NOT A FAN OF MILLER AND I HONESTLY DONT KNOW IF WE HAVE ANY DEADWEIGHT TO PUll OFF A TRADE…BUT THOSE ARE THE KIND OF DEALS THE HAWKS SHOULD BE LOOKING FOR.

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Sund has performed admirably during his second offseason so far. I give credit where credit is due, but this 47 game win thing has little to do with Sund, that was BKs brain child, for better or worse. BK built the foundation of this team: Jsmoove, Marvin, Horford, JJ, Woody – any success this team has had over the past two season is owed to BK not Sund. Certainly, he inherited the position after all the hardwork and heartache was done, but that’s status quo.

But to Sunds credit, Crawford and Teague were solid moves. Jamal was homeless and Teague was very safe at 19 and a better pick than BJ Mullens. Why? Bigs take longer to develop so the likelihood of getting a return on your late pick investment is far greater with a lil guy than a big guy at that point. So, good choice there.

Much rather have seen Garret Siler in the 2nd round too, but keeping a kid in Europe saves salary and a roster spot and this is the ATL Spirit. And we all know what happens to ATLs Europeans…we’ll never see them again after last night.

But stashing the 2nd pick, preserves a roster spot for a returning vet or another free agent, which is a better proposition. The Hawks, not counting cap holds, have about $43M on the books, leaving another $15-$20M in cap room before the reach luxury tax territory.

They could re-sign Bibby – for what I dont know, ZaZa, Flip and Solo and add a big bruiser with low post skills like Drew Gooden or sign and trade for Camby, Kaman or Tyson Chandler – now that would be interesting and allow for Sund to really make his mark on this team.

Mo Evans, Flip, Crawford and Teague are foreplay, just a tease. C’mon man, strap up and hit it!

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I still think we are too soft in the middle with just Al. With Shaq now coming East, and Dwight and maybe even Boozer, we need more presence in the middle. I hear all these trade rumors with Amare going to GS, why not to ATL ? I say give up Williams, Childress’ contract and next year’s first round pick, if necessary throw in Teague, and we could have an awesome starting five: C Stoudmire, PF Horford, SF Smith, SG Johnson, PG Sessions/Jack/Teague. GS more or less are just giving up Biedrins and bench players ! We need the Spirit ownership to finally spend some money, we’re finally close to something special and need to take that next step, not one step back !

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Volman, my bad–I missed the earlier comment about someone focusing on defense. I’d prefer that your best offensive option not have to overwork himself at the SF when he is more of a threat/mismatch for other teams to worry about when he plays the SG.

Joe has an advantage over most SG. He does not have an advantage over most SF. He is bigger and stronger than the guards, not the forwards. Why take away from our best weapon.

No disrespect to the other guards, but they do not create the degree of mismatch that Joe does.

A SF that is bigger & longer also allows us more flexibility. It is better for Marvin to get caught on a PF or C after a pick & roll than Joe. Over the course of a season, I fear that it would be too much wear and tear on him…even if Woody finds a way to limit his minutes to 35/night.

The Lakers have Ariza to chase around SF, the Magic have Pietrus, Houston has Battier & Artest. It is not an odd concept to have a guy that can focus on slowing down the guy that is often the most athletic person on the other team.

BWAF

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great move 2 go get crawford.. acie never lead up to any of the hype he came out of college with.. Drafting teague im not sold on since we just got crawford i kno he aint a pg but really neither is teague he reminds me of a slash pg/sg that can score but dont like to pass (ben gordon).. I wouldve been happier with BJ Mullens at tha 19th pick and Patrick Mills at the 49th.. We would of gotten a true point and at least a big man to handle some of tha load of rebounds and blocks shots for horford and J smoove……

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MannyT

I agree, we don’t have Bird Rights (yet) and it will get messy re-signing Flip. I don’t know what Flip made when he was a Pacer, but he made only 1M last year as a Hawk. If we offer him a raise at 125% at 2.25M/year from the MLE and offer him a 2 year option that will put him over into Bird Rights or some derivative starting next season. We could than offer him an extension under Early-Bird in 2010 with 175% raise from the 2.25M salary. It will have to be a level of trust to make this work, no doubt. But it is only 1.25M hit off the MLE. All the other teams over the cap will be faced with the same scenario if considering signing Flip and that’s most of the teams. I’m not sure if Flip wants to be a journey player bouncing from team to team every year. He will never get paid his true value that way and he knows it.

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regardless of who the hawks add, they will are in a 4way tie for the 4th seed: 1.clev 2.orlando 3.boston 4.Hawks, Philly, Chicago, Miami.

we will definitely make the playoffs again, thereby solidyfin’ woody’s existence as coach. woody will get a 2yr extenstion for takin’ the hawks to playoffs 3times!!

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The Deal with Crawford is THIS. He is here to REPLACE Bibby and Hell maybe even JOE year after next. If you think the HAWKS are going to the 2nd round of the PlayOFFs again with the LOSS of Bibby and the addition of Teague and Crawford you should check yourself into REHAB!! Bibby wants 10 mil. The HAWKS are offering 2 mil a GAS card and a Free Pass to Six Flags. The HAWKS were NOTHING REPEAT NOTHING until he came here. To me thats worth at least 7 or 8 mil for that mere fact alone. Money issues are navigating this TEAM. My thing is you cut payroll to save money, but you get a suckazz team that nobody comes to see Play. So you lose the money you saved at THE GATE! Then again u cant get blood from a Turnip. PLUS you still need a Quality big. Say hello to the Lottery Hawks Fans!!! IM DONE!!!!!!

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yo..disregard everything i wrote in the box above me..

everything except me agreeing with wabe…

im drunk,and just went rattling..
godsnite people

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I guess I’m weighing in a little late on this one. First off, it’s nice to see Marvin Williams getting a little bit of love. Whether he ends up in an Atlanta uniform or somewhere else, he’s shaping into a quality player in this league, and it showed a lot of heart for him to come back from that back (no pun intended) injury the way he tried to do in the playoffs. And I’ll tell you something else, in the regular season,when healthy, he did as decent a job guarding Lebron James as you could ask anyone to do…

As for Acie Law IV, I think that he came into a very difficult situation. He came into an environment where the players had to produce instantly. No problem for Horford, but Law was not nearly as finished a product, and then he got bitten by the injury bug, and that was it. I’m glad he’s getting a chance to start over. As for Claxton, not necessarily his fault, but a disaster from start to finish.

I think Teague is coming into a situation where he can learn and grow and not be expected to contribute majorly in his first year, particularly if we can get Bibby or Murray back. He’s also coming into a situation where, while this is the last year of Woody’s contract, the head coach is not necessarily looking down the barrel of unemployment at the first three game losing streak of the season. I think Woody will be a little more patient with Teague because he can be…

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No doubt Big Ray, but at least Teague isn’t comming into a situation where the deck is already heavily stacked against his long term success. The emphasis in that sentence being long term…

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Did Michael Jackson die? Wow…I hadn’t heard. of course, I hadn’t hear about Vick. A-Rod, Kobe, Manny or T.O. either.

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For the benefit of Teague and giving him a fresh start, I’m going to reframe from talking about Woody’s stupidly in the off-season. That Acie comment he made was unnecessary. If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything. I know it will be hard, but we have got to turn the page of this guy poor handling of PGs. May the force be with me.

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I could just punch the GM of Minnesota in the face for picking Lawson right before the Hawks pick. Then again he might have saved us the embarassment of not picking him even if he was there anyway. I thought he wouldve been perfect. With that said i still like Teague, dude can shoot, he is very quick i just hope he plays, cant afford to have another draft where the players dont contribute at all, example 06 draft of Sheldon Williams and AC Law, neither are with the team, and i believie Sheldon wont even be in the league in two years..

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I like j smith and all, but he doesnt seem to understand he cant shoot. if he just defended and took the ball to the hole every time he would be a all star. but amare can beast down low and that way horford can stay at the 4 spot. if they dont ask for too much i say make the deal happen

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Teauge is Jason Terry.

Same upside, same downside. A tweener whose aptitude doesn’t extend to playing point.

His best shot is coming off the bench as a burst of energy. Just like Terry’s role in Dallas. Teague will never be a starter in the NBA.

(Goshdarn, it’s amazing how quickly a man can become an expert by reading a few blogs here and there. Who needs to watch the games? They take too long.
)

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I like Jamal Crawford – good player with a solid game. But he’s not a point guard. He’s a combo-guard. He’d be a perfect 6th man but he’s not cut out to be the floor general. If Atlanta manages to not re-sign Bibby, they’ll go back to being what they were before he showed up – A talented, under achieving 32-win ball club.

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Here’s the bottomline. We’ll never know what Acie Law might have done in an Atlanta uniform because he never got the chance to show it. His first half-season in Atlanta he was stepped over for Ty Lue and Anthony Johnson. That in and of itself tells me that his days were numbered from the second the Hawks called his name on draft night. For whatever reason, Woody seems to like Teague,and that might give him something that Acie Law IV never had while in Atlanta, a fighting chance.

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Amare to ATL

If the Hawks were to acquire Stoudemire, then they probably wouldn’t be able to resign Bibby, Marvin, and Flip. Truthfully, unless Evans was thrown in the deal, they probably would have to choose just one of the three.

It’s intriguing. Would you take one year to try and compete for a title, or continue to hope for the future, with good reasoning?

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Love the Crawford pickup – it was a GREAT trade just to get anything for Acie and Claxton at all! Like the draft pick. Now sign Flip and we’re good to go. If we sign Bibby we might be overloaded at point. Not sure on that one.

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Without using some kind of Chinese Arithmetic, I don’t see how Amare 17M/yr contract could get done in ATL. However, maybe we could S-T ZaZA and package him with Josh perhaps. Doable only if the Suns eat Josh’s Kicker.

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I GAURANTEE IF WAKE FOREST DIDN’T JUST COLLAPSE THE WAY THEY DID AND FINISHED A BIT BETTER OR GOT DEEPER IN THE TOURNY – TEAGUE COULD’VE AND WOULD’VE PROBABLY BEEN A TOP 10 PICK.

Go look at guys like Johnny Flynn. Those guys didn’t necessarily have spectacular seasons – but they shined at the right time. Flynn was instantly put on the national stage after his 6 OT performance against UCONN in the Big East Tourney. He played alright in the tourney, but I don’t think he’s as prolific a scorer as Teague.

Johnny Flynn just reminds me of Rajon Rondo. I think that’s the type of gaurd he’ll be in the NBA. He’ll be thinking pass first – which isn’t a bad thing at the POINT. But I would think the Hawks needed someone whose a bit better creating for himself to help take some pressure off of JJ. A point gaurd with a scorers mentality – and that’s what Teague has over someone like Flynn.

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Mark
I’m no expert but if the forces really wanted this thing done, it could get done. I say that because Bosh wants to move and Toronto wants something (anything) for him. Bosh would have to agree to a contract re-work via an extension to match Josh’s terms. Then we do a S-T packaging Josh with something else. The only real issue is Josh’s kicker; who pays for it. No doubt, it would certainly be a bold move by Mr. Sund and fill with mixed emotions from the fans. Talent wise, this is the only deal that makes sense involving Josh.

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Maybe a long shot but if we can sign and trade Marvin, Mo Evans, and a future pick to N.O., Phoenix, L.A., or Toronto…… we could look like this

pg/ Crawford
sg/ Johnson, Crawford
sf/ Smith, Johnson
pf/ Horford, Smith
c/ Chandler/ Amare/ Bosh/ Camby

bench/ Flip,Teague, ZaZa, and add a F/A or two

Also if some how we could leave Mo out in a deal like that we could add him back to the bench. Maybe if some crazy chance falls our way maybe Chill would come back. But you can always find a F/A. Just dreaming, but maybe the L.A. deal or N.O. deal could happen. Really doubt the Bosh thing though.

Plus I think Josh at SF would really disrupt a Lebron, Kobe, etc. We forget Josh gets up there and with a brick wall there behind him in Horford PF and a monster Center we will be a good defensive team. Who cares if Josh can’t score from the outside, because we have Joe, Jamal, Teague, and Flip to do that.

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to all of the woody haters, eat crow!! after this season, woody will be re-up for a 2 to 3yrs extension. the hawks will definitely make the playoffs this year. at which seed, i don’t know. but if woody gets them to the playoffs 3yrs in a row, how can you argue against him bein’ the coach for the next 3 yrs?

i have the hawks tied in a 4way tie for the 4th seed. 4.Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, and Philly. don’t sleep on indy and washington this yr. either. i am also worried about new jersey and milwaukee and charlotte, too.

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Would Josh playing SF be an upgrade? I don’t think so.

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Ant,

According to Woody, that’s all Bibby’s doing. Hey, it’s in print, you can read for yourself.

Mark,

I agree. Optimal situation is re-signing Bibby. With Crawford around, we really don’t need Flip, whether Sund likes him or not. He’s proven his worth, meaning he should be able to get a job stateside, but if Bibby can be re-signed for around 6-7 mil per, and 3 yrs max, you’re then comparing Crawford to Flip. No contest…

The Josh for Amare (I refuse to put that ridiculous apostrophe in his name) talk will never quit until Amare lands on another team. There’s as much a possibility that he stays in Phoenix, but for some reason I think this is the year he really goes. Two things always hold him up, though. It’s not that he’s moody. It’s not that he’s an arrogant prick. It’s that his continued health is a question, and so is his contract status. No team will sign him as-is contract-wise unless they truly believe they can make a title run with him THIS YEAR.

In the end, we are missing some of the components to a title-contending team. And not all of those components are players.

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If any of you guys think that Josh Smith can play SF you are out of your minds or you don’t watch real games!!!!!!! Josh SMith is a terrible man on man defender. He becomes more of a liability as a SF. He can’t shoot, he can’t dribble, he can’t play man on man D which are important skills to have as a SF. He needs to stay as close to the basket as possible. You actually want him on the perimeter taking jumpers. Getting one block a game doesn’t make you an all world defender.

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if anybody think that trading johson is the answer u are crazy. he may not be lebron, wade or kobe but he is the best thing the hawks have had in a long time. its only 2 players we CANT get rid of. Al and Joe. our only all star and our future all star. not unless somebody is gonna give up all star caliber players which i doubt. i been a hawks fan forever. i suffered thru all the garbage teams just like all he other true atl fans. we havent been decent in awhile. just make smart decisions. if we’re keeping the same team for the most part, please dont add anymore small forwards

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Don’t trade Josh for amare that would be crazy!!!! What are u guys smoking??? If anything you would trade Marvin and rights to childress for Stoudamire. Josh Smith should not even be considered for trading. He’s one of the elite gamechangers on defense. Mark what our your thoughts on this?

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Mark man these AMARE FOR SMOOVE RUMORS FROM ESPN wont go away. Do you think this is all smoke or are we going to have a guy who wears goggles on our roster July 1st ( and I dont mean Bo Outlaw )……

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I agree with HAWKMAN. The Hawks do not need to trade for Amare or Bosh, but they do have some tough decisions on Bibby, Flip, Marvin and Zaza. I would like to resign Zaza, Marvin and Bibby (if possible), and sign either Josh Heytvelt, Alade Aminu, John Bryant or Garret Siler.

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